For the first time in more than 40 years, a capsule has returned to Earth with rock samples from the moon – thanks to one Chinese spacecraft That touched Wednesday afternoon.
Accordingly State Media, A capsule of fragmented Changai 5 with its parachutes landed in the region at 1 a.m. Wednesday after 1 a.m. ET in the Siziwang district of the Inner Mongolia region.
Shortly after the spacecraft landed, state media tweeted photos of a ground search and recovery team searching for the capsule at the landing site. Also Reported Chinese President Xi Jinping has congratulated the mission on its success.
Earlier this month, the spacecraft had two to four mediums Landed on the moon. They collected about 4.4 pounds of rock and soil samples from the surface after drilling about six feet into the moon’s crust in the previous incredible lava field.
An ascending vehicle then placed the samples in a sealed box, apparently taking them back to the modular module for completion. Successful missions – Another in the more fast series Aspiration Mission For China’s space program.
On Wednesday, NASA’s director of science, Thomas Zurbuchen, Tweeted Congratulatory message to China after the return of the capsule. “These specimens will help us to uncover the secrets of our lunar system and gain a new understanding of the history of our solar system.”
While on the moon, the spacecraft – named after a mythical Chinese moon goddess – hoisted the Chinese flag for the first time, according to images from China’s National Space Administration. It marked The third Chinese spacecraft to land on the moon And the first to take off again.
Scientists plan to study samples to find clues about the origin of the moon and its formation. The rocks are called weather rammers, which were thought to be billions of years younger.
China is now the third country in the world to receive samples from the moon, behind the United States and the former Soviet Union.
The last specimens returned to Earth in 1976 with Russia’s Luna-24 mission. Earlier, US Apollo astronauts brought back hundreds of pounds of moon rocks.
